Down marker for football



April 21, 1942. R. c. BAKER 2,230,632

' DOWN MARKER FOR FOOTBALL Filed April 4, 1941 vIIIIIIJIlIl I INVENTORATTO R N EYS Patented Apr. 21, 1942 UNITED STATES:

r or ies 3 Claims.

This invention relates to a down: marker/for the game of football andhas for an object to providea device of this character adapted todisplay at all times the number of the next down in the series, and thedirection the offensive team will attempt to advance the ball, thedevice being adapted to be carried by a linesman on the side lineopposite the position of the ball so that the data will be displayed atthe point of interest and will be visible to players and spectatorsalike.

A further object is to provide a device of this character which willemploy'four hingedly suspended metal plates individually hung so thatthey may be lifted and swung over the supportingbar to drop down on' theopposite side, the.

numerals being so arranged on .the plates that the same numeral will bedisplayed on each side of the device for indicating the number of thenext down in the series.

A further object is to provide a device of this character having anarrow constructed in two parts hinged to the sides of the U-shaped frameof the device and adapted to be folded to form stops on opposite sidesof the plates when the device is not in use, and adapted to be extendedto aligned position to show the direction the ball is to be advanced.

A further object is to provide a device of this character which will beformed of a few strong, simple and durable parts, which will beinexpensive to manufacture, and which will not easily get out of order.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists ofcertain novel details of construction and combinations of partshereinafter fully described and claimed, it being understood thatvarious modifications may be resorted to within the scope of theappended claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any ofthe advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a down marker constructed in accordancewith the invention, showing the two sections of the arrow aligned inoperative position.

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view of the down marker taken on the line2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a cross sectional view of the down marker similar to Figure2, but showing the two sections of the arrow in folded position toconfine the numbered plates between them.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional View of the down marker taken onthe line 4-4 of Figure 1 showing-the lockinghpin: of one section of thearrow,

Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional viewof the down marker taken on theline 5-5'of Figure 1, showingathe sections of the arrow locked in foldedposition.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary rear elevation of the downmarker shown inFigure 1.

Figure 7 is a detail cross sectional View taken on the line 1-1 ofFigure 5 showing the suspension rings and respective numbered plates.

Referring now to the drawing in. whichlike characters of referencedesignate similar parts in the various views, Ill designates a U-shapedframe. A plate supporting bar II connects the legs of the frame togetherat the top (thereof. Four down indicating plates I2, Hi,- M and [5 aresuspended vertically, one in front of the other on the supporting bar II by respective relative large pairs of rings I6, ll, I8 and If). Astaff 2!] is formed integral with the transverse bottom member 2| of theU-shaped frame and is of sufiicient length to dispose the sign plates I2to I 5, inclusive, well above the head of the .linesman carrying thedown marker.

Each plate bears a numeral on its front face and on its back face andthe numerals are arranged so that the same numeral, denoting a down nextto be made will be displayed on the front and rear of the down marker.Specifically, the plates I2, l3, l4 and I5 will display on their frontfaces the respective numerals 1, 2, 3, 4, while the rear faces of theseplates will display respectively the numerals 2, 3, 4 and 1. Thus, whenplate I2 is displaying the numeral 1 denoting a first down to be nextmade, plate I5 will also be displaying the numeral 1 which is on itsrear face. When plate I 2 is swung upwardly and over the supporting barII to the rear side of the plate I5, then the numeral 2 will bedisplayed on the front face of the plate l3, while the numeral 2 will bedisplayed on the rear face of plate l2 which has just been turned over.Thus, by turning the plates one by one, the successive downs to be madein their order will be indicated on both the front and the back of thedown marker.

For indicating the direction of play, an arrow is provided comprising afront section 22 which carries the arrow head 23, and a rear section 24which carries the feather 25, both sections being formed of metal andprovided with respective hinge eyes 26 and 21 which are rotatablymounted on respective legs of the U-shaped frame Ill. The two sectionsof the arrow may be swung in opposite directions on the legs of theU-shaped frame as pivots, as denoted by the arrowheads Z8 and 29 inFigure 2, to inclose the four sign plates 12 to 15, inclusive, betweenthem when the device is to be stored or transported.

For locking the two sections of the arrow in aligned operative positionor in folded released position, the sections of the arrow are providedwith respective notches 30 and 3| formed in the hinge eyes 26 and 21respectively. Pins 32 and 33 are engaged through the legs of theU-shaped frame and project at both ends beyond the legs to be receivedin the respective notches 30 and 3|. When the arrow of the down markeris in aligned operative position, as shown in Figure 1, and it isdesired to store the down marker, both sections are raised vertically onthe legs of the U-shaped frame to disengage the pins 32 and 33 from thenotches 30 and 3|, whereupon the sections may be moved verticallydownward on the legs of the U-shaped frame to again engage the pins inthe notches and lock the sections of the arrow in folded position.

The sign plates l2 to l5, inclusive, are provided on the lower edgeswith respective tabs 34, 35, 36 and 31 displaying numerals thereonindicative of the numerals on the rear face of the respective signplates. These tabs provide finger grips, by means of which the platesmay be successively turned around on the supporting bar H from front torear of the row.

From the above description, it is thought that the construction andoperation of the invention will be fully understood without furtherexplanation.

What is claimed is:

1. A football down marker comprising a U- shaped frame, a plurality of"plates hingedly suspended between the legs of the frame and individuallyswingable from the front side to the rear side of the frame to denotesuccessive downs, and a play direction indicating arrow formed ofsections respectively hinged to the legs of the U-shaped frame andadapted to be disposed in alignment in one position to indicatedirection of play and adapted to be disposed respectively in front andin rear of the frame to house said plates for transportation and storagewhen the device is not in use.

2. A football down marker comprising a U- shaped frame, sign platescorresponding to respective downs hingedly supported at the topbetweenthe legs of the frame, a play direction indicating arrow having a frontsection carrying an arrowhead and a rear section carrying a feather,both sections being provided with respective hinge eyes rotatablymounted on respective legs of the U-shaped frame, the two sections ofthe arrow being swingable in opposite directions on the legs of theframe as pivots to inclose the sign plates between them when the deviceis to be stored or transported, the two sections of the arrow beingswingable to aligned position on the legs of the U-shaped frame todenote direction of play, and means for latching the two sections of thearrow in either folded or aligned position.

3. The structure as of claim 2 and in which said means comprises pinsengaged transversely through the legs of the frame, and notches in thehinge eyes of the sections of the arrow interchangeably receiving thefront or rear projecting ends of the pins.

ROY C. BAKER.

